How Learning Works: Seven Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching
Clear, useful review of current research on learning and how to apply it in the classroom. Nothing earth shattering here, but I will use material from it.
I liked this one more than the first, and enjoyed the first quite a bit. Aaronovitch gets an extra star for how he handles Leslie's disfigurement. I listened to this rather than read and the narrator is good, and that always contributes.
A compulsive read, which is rare. I enjoyed the narrative alternating between Ruby Lennox, who was a spectacular narrator (almost all the way) throughout, and the story of Ruby's family. Atkinson uses a technique where she flashes forward and sometimes backward as introduces characters into books that I've always enjoyed - perfect for a reader who hates foreshadowing. My only quibble was her wrapping everything up in the end and Ruby the adult wasn't as interesting a narrator as Ruby the child. On one hand it was nice to find out certain things, on the other hand I really didn't need to know. Still, one of my best reads of the year and I suspect it will keep that status.
The mystery falls apart a bit, but I loved spending time with both characters, particularly the girl with the dragon tattoo. The most fun I've had reading in a book in a long time.
